


i'm having a ball

by blobfish_miffy



Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018), Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018) Actor RPF, Queen (Band)
Genre: Also there's harlee if you squint, Attempt at Humor, Based on a Tumblr Post, Embarrassment, I'm Bad At Tagging, In essence at least, Male Friendship, Pranks and Practical Jokes, Revenge, bens out for revenge, buddies bein bros, but not really, crackfic, gwils sort of an asshole, idk it just fit with the fic, joe is just very confused, just as a warning, like squint very well, lucy knows how to handle shit, or are already drunk, people will get drunk in this, rami is basically passed out in this entire fic, rog and bri are nostalgic af, they're the dads, theyre always at gwils apartment for some reason
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-16
Updated: 2019-03-18
Packaged: 2019-11-19 02:56:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18130037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blobfish_miffy/pseuds/blobfish_miffy
Summary: “Ben,” he urged, “Ben. Get off, ya git. You’re being a right idiot.”Ben spun around, spotted Gwilym, and gave him the biggest grin he’d given him to date. “Gwilyyyym!” he slurred. “Look, mate, look! I’m taller than you now!”orGwil's annoyance sparks into genius and Ben seeks revenge in the best way possible.Joe's just very confused.*title is from Don't Stop Me Now





	1. #1 "You're such a dad, Gwilym"

**Author's Note:**

> Whooooo crackfic oh shit.  
> Based on the a lovely incorrect quote by @incorrectborhapquotes on Tumblr, as I am indeed in love with that account.  
> As I am incompetent regarding technology(and most things,,, let's be real), I am only able to transcript the quote here:
> 
> Ben: I DO WHAT I WANT  
> Gwil: I'm telling Roger.  
> Ben: no wait.  
> ***later that day***  
> Gwil: what the hell Ben??? You told Brian on me?!
> 
> Either way, enjoy!! <3

The night was not exactly… going to plan, Gwil would say. Not that the actual plan was very clear, but they’d all mutually agreed to not drink too much so that they could still have a relaxing sunday without waking up at twelve with a devastating hangover. Gwilym, being well over thirty now, knew that he’d passed the days of being able to drink until dawn and then help his father drag logs across the yard; sometimes he felt hungover from going to bed a little later than usual, which was less than ideal and honestly made him feel older than he actually was. Of course, he wasn’t old _yet_ , he just wasn’t twenty anymore, baby-faced and filled with endless amounts of energy, and he knew it.

Which was why he was honestly feeling quite annoyed when he was still sitting in a pub at three in the morning, a pleasant amount of tipsy, starting to feel drowsy, and ready to go home.

Rami was next to him, slumbering against his shoulder, completely tuckered out. It was one of the reasons why he wanted to leave so badly as well, even though Rami was older than him and almost forty years old, but he still felt a strange protectiveness over the man. Lucy, in turn, was sitting next to Rami, stirring her drink with her finger, smiling contentedly and listening to Joe, who was telling a story in a way only Joe could: with lots of arm movements, a loud voice, and a grin Gwilym was quite jealous of sometimes. Ben had disappeared somewhere around twelve and still wasn’t back, though Gwilym had caught glimpses of him. Knowing Ben, the annoyingly handsome git had probably gotten himself wasted with his mates who he somehow seemed to find everywhere they went.

Gwilym stifled a yawn and downed his beer, contemplating if he should get a new one. Rami seemed awfully comfortable resting against his shoulder, but Joe’s drink was almost empty as well -

 _Ah, fuck it._ He needed to stretch his legs anyway.

He carefully pushed Rami towards Lucy(who kissed his forehead with a wide grin) and slid out of the booth, hearing Joe call out an order and mentally saving the request. He ventured towards the bar, excusing himself as he squeezed past a couple of partygoers, eyes sweeping the bar for the blond boy of their group. When he found nothing, he started to chew his bottom lip but shrugged, leaning over the bar to get the bartender’s attention.

One person -  a guy, decent-looking with a pierced ear and a five o’clock shadow - shot him a flirty smile, but he wasn’t in the mood.

He yelled his order in the bartender’s ear, who flashed him a thumbs up as he started tapping the pints. Gwilym had just taken his wallet out of his pocket and handed the guy a tenner, when various whoops caught his attention.

A guy had climbed onto the bar and stripped himself of his shirt, earning him quite a few wolf whistles. He was built, Gwil had to give him that, with a muscular stomach and nice arms. There was a tattoo on his inner arm, some weird design that resembled a whale’s tail, and -

Wait.

He recognised that tattoo.

His gaze flicked upwards, to the guy’s face, which was inexplicably _Ben._

Gwilym gazed upwards in frustration. _Oh my_ God, he thought, and muffled groan left him. If he hadn’t felt like a dad before, he sure as _fuck_ felt like it now.

Should he -

 _No._ No no no no. No. He wasn’t going to do that. It was Ben’s own problem, he was a grown up, he could deal with his own shit.

He grabbed the two pints, mouthed ‘tips’ at the bartender, who was still offering his change, and walked back towards their booth.

Rami had full-on curled into Lucy, probably sleeping now, though Gwilym wouldn’t for the love of God know how with all the noise surrounding them. Lucy seemed to be staring at Ben with an expression that was a mix between amusement and cringing, and Joe was _cheering._

 _Of course,_ Gwilym half-fumed, plonking the beer down in front of Joe and sliding back into the booth, immediately downing half of his drink. It wasn’t the greatest idea - beer is not exactly the best drink to chug - but he felt like he needed it.

“So we found Ben,” Lucy waved in the direction of the blond, who had accepted a drink from someone in the crowd and was messily downing it. “Might not be the best circumstances.”

Gwil snorted, taking another sip of his beer. “Slight understatement there, Luce.”

She grinned at him, patting his arm with her free hand. “You’re such a dad, Gwilym.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

“ _Wooo!”_ Joe yelled. “Get it, Benny-boy!”

Lucy grimaced a little, inclining her head towards Ben. “Yes. Become the dad, Gwilym, before Ben does something he’ll regret.”

He threw the rest of his drink back, grimacing at the bitter aftertaste, and sighed. “Even more than this?”

“Exactly,” she said. “Now go.”

He sighed again, deeply this time, and slid himself out of the booth. He half-witnessed Lucy smacking Joe’s bicep and Joe whining loudly, before he ventured towards the bar area.

It was completely packed. People were squeezed together, cheering, and he chewed on his lip as he brainstormed ways to get Ben to climb off. Grabbing his phone to be certain and tapping the camera-app to start filming, he pushed himself through.

“Ben,” he urged, “ _Ben._ Get off, ya git. You’re being a right idiot.”

Ben spun around, spotted Gwilym, and gave him the biggest grin he’d given him to date. “Gwilyyyym!” he slurred. “Look, mate, look! I’m taller than you now!”

“You sure are,” he sighed. “Even taller. But I need you to get down down, okay?”

“Like shit,” Ben yelled, and the crowd echoed that.

“Come’n, mate. Get over here. Rami’s exhausted and wants to go home, and Lucy too.”

Ben paused at that. “Not Joe?”

Gwilym blinked slowly. “Joe as well.”

“Oh.” He crossed his arms, making his biceps flex in a way that made Gwilym feel funny, and gave it a thought. “No.”

“ _Ben._ Get down here.”

“No!” he yelled. “You get up here!”

The crowd _ooh_ ’ed expectantly, and Gwilym had to fight back a groan of annoyance. “Like shit,” he parrotted, angling his phone camera up so he could get a clearer shot. “Get down, Benjamin. Now.”

“Go suck a dick!”

“Gladly, mate,” he automatically replied, not even thinking about what his words could insinuate. “but you’ve got to get down here first.”

Ben flushed red but held his ground. “No!”

“ _Benjamin, I swear to God-”_

“I’m not gonna come down!” he yelled. “You can’t make me!”

Frustration reaching a peak now, he bit out the first thing that came to mind. “Ben, if you don’t come down here right now, I’m telling Roger!”

Ben swivelled around with a shocked gasp. “You wouldn’t,” he breathed, pointing an accusing finger at Gwil.

“Oh yes I would,” he managed to put a taunting edge to his voice. “Mark my words.”

The crowd _ooh’_ ed yet again, and Ben’s nostrils flared in frustration, green eyes flashing dangerously. He leaned forward, almost as if he was going to jump off, and started drunkenly smirking instead.

“Eat shit, Gwil.”

Gwilym came very close to leaving. He really did. He came really close to marching back towards the booth, swinging Rami over his shoulder and getting Lucy to coax Joe along as they got into an Uber and drove to his apartment. It was tempting, really, because he was tired and longed for his bed and maybe some greasy food,

But he knew it. Even if he were feeling a little pity for hungover Ben in the morning, the slightest bit, he was petty enough to continue doing it. The sheer satisfaction it’d bring him would outlast the guilt, he knew.

And even if it was childish, Gwilym chose to continue filming for another ten seconds or so, ending with the words “Look at what your son is doing, Roger. Isn’t it terrible?”

 

He had no idea how he managed to deposit all of them in an Uber, let alone his apartment. Lucy and Rami were in the guest bedroom - he had to help Lucy dragging her boyfriend in there - and Joe insisted on sleeping on the couch for some godforsaken reason, leaving both Ben and Gwilym in Gwilym’s bed.

Great.

Ben passed out the moment his head hit the pillow, still dressed in his t-shirt and jeans he didn’t bother to take off. Gwil had established his boundaries long ago, not willing to dress Ben in a more comfortable outfit while he slept, so he merely wrapped the boy in the duvet and got a seperate one for himself, curling into it, but not before sending Roger the video. He apologized for the length and the hour, stating that he simply wanted to share it with the older man.

Even if it was all in good fun, he still felt a bit guilty. But then he remembered the annoyance he’d felt when Ben disappeared even though there was a clear plan, and the fact that he’d have to live through a snoring blond right next to his ear for the majority of the morning, and he felt a little less guilty.

He couldn’t wait for Roger’s reply. 

* * *

  
Ben’s screech of fury that morning, paired with Gwil's favourite tea and glancing down at the multitude of laughter-emoticons he’d received from Roger and the one text that said ‘ _genius. Bri’_ made Ben’s ice-cold anger for the rest of the day all worth it.


	2. #1.5 nostalgia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roger gets a text message

Roger did not text often. He usually called, a habit from when he was younger, and the small letters on his phone’s keyboard usually drove him mad in a way that always made Brian laugh. The only person he really texted was, indeed, his best friend, who he liked to send what their children called ‘memes’ after Brian had asked about it. 

The kids from Bohemian Rhapsody almost never texted him. They dove straight into e-mails or actual phone calls, and the rare text they did send usually included a date and location for a possible brunch or lunch. He knew Brian texted more often, specifically with Gwilym, but he honestly could not be arsed. 

Imagine his surprise, then, when he found that Gwilym had sent him not one, not two, but four text messages. One of them was a video of about 3 minutes long, and the other three were messages apologizing for the length, the time, and a short explanation of why the video could be of interest for him(a straight to the point answer that said ‘ _ it’s fuckin hilarious _ ’).

Interest now indeed grabbed, he snatched his reading glasses from his bedside table and turned on the volume. The video was grainy, obviously taken in a low-lit area, but the audio was good enough and he could clearly hear Gwil’s voice tutting Ben about ‘getting off’. 

The camera angled up, and Roger barked out a laugh. There was his boy, drunk off his arse, shirtless and grinning, waving around with a slurred ‘ _ Gwilyyyym’ _ , yelling something about being taller than Gwilym now. It reminded Roger of the early seventies, a time when he would do the exact same thing with Brian, and the frustration in Gwil’s voice gave him that warm feeling of nostalgia. 

The banter made him smile, and he burst out laughing at Gwilym’s probably unintentional suggestion to blow Ben, a warm feeling spreading through his chest when Ben turned bright red but still managed to splutter out a ‘no’. He grinned at the threat of telling him, and laughter filled the bedroom yet again after Ben had come daringly close to the camera, flashed it a drunken grin, and said  _ ‘eat shit _ ’. 

Just as the video came to an end, Gwilym’s disapproving voice echoing through the room, Sarina came out of the bathroom. Her hair was still dripping wet and she smiled at his laughter. “What’re you chortling about?” she asked curiously, as she crawled onto the bed. 

He started typing a reply, one with a lot of those teary-laughter emoticons he saw Rufus use and a live account of him wiping away tears. Hitting send, he clicked on the video yet again, shoving it in her line of sight. 

“You’ve  _ got  _ to see this, love…”


	3. #2 'Payback feels amazing, no?'

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gwilym finally gets what was coming for him.  
> Also, don't drink on an empty stomach, kids.

Ben was very much out for revenge. 

Alright, Gwilym had apologized. Multiple times. All had been with a laugh and a cheeky grin, but the first with a genuine English breakfast that settled his stomach so fast it’d almost made him horny. And Roger hadn’t judged him at all, it seemed; no, he obviously found it hilarious and texted him soon after he got the video with a ‘ _ I cried. Btw get Gwil to make you breakfast _ ’, so there was not really any loss of face. 

Rami hadn’t been conscious enough to witness the event, the multiple people in the bar barely recognised him, Joe and Lucy only found it hilarious, the video(or similar ones) had not ended up on the internet as far as he knew and Gwilym obviously had attempted to coax him down before deciding to make fun of him a little. And it was partly his fault, drinking so much and suddenly becoming very extraverted and have his inner jock come out. He knew that Gwilym had had plans to turn in early that night, but he still didn’t like the fact the event - which he’d rather forget - had been immortalized with Gwil’s iPhone, even if Gwil had threatened with telling Roger. 

So, revenge. He’d stewed on that for a while, not coming up with any solid plans, but ended up deciding that Gwilym would have to go down in a similar fashion: absolutely shitfaced and making a fucking fool out of himself. It would be hilarious. 

And to Ben’s luck, the moment arrived the next time the went to a pub. Neither Rami or Lucy felt up to go: Rami was set to fly back to the States the next day, and Lucy wanted to spend that last day with him. She did, however, making him swear that she’d get updates on any type of revenge happening that night, while Rami had just rolled his eyes in annoyance and given Ben a friendly hug.

That particular day, Gwil hadn’t eaten much. Ben knew this as they had spent the day together. They’d been too busy repainting Gwilym’s guest room, as Joe insisted that the pastel-yellow colour on the walls was “ugly” and needed obvious “revamping”, so they’d spent the better part of the morning and afternoon doing exactly that, painting one or two walls a dark green and the rest a cream, slightly off-white colour. They’d each had their respective showers, shovelled down some take-out(the only meal of the day), and had been off to the pub, which meant that the three of them needed to be slower with the drinks than usual. 

Gwilym wasn’t exactly a lightweight, Ben knew: he’d been out drinking with the guy more often than enough to know that he could drink most Brits under the table, and was able to keep down the alcohol easily if he needed to. 

This night, however, was a little different. 

 

Gwil climbed into the pole and spun around with awfully good form, laughing like a maniac the entire time. Joe cackled and let out a whoop, joined by the small crowd surrounding him.

It felt a bit weird, if he was being honest. Seeing Gwil - one of his best mates - work the pole was strangely hot, and he was tempted to completely forget about ever making an embarrassing video and just watch and enjoy. Suddenly the brunet was upside down and making kissy-faces at Joe, who was giggling so loudly Ben could hear him over the small band on stage there. A warm feeling settled in his lower belly when Gwil’s shirt rode up a little, but Ben inhaled deeply and shook his head to get himself out of it. Hormones couldn’t get in the way of embarrassing the fuck out of your best mate, right?

Ben unlocked his phone and tapped on the camera app, putting it in video-mode as soon as it opened, and slid out of the booth smoothly. His beer stood forgotten on the table, and he immediately made a mental note to not drink it when he returned - you never knew. As he slowly pushed through the crowd and started to record discreetly, Gwilym shouted such a loud and enthusiastic ‘ _ BEYYYNN!’ _ that he couldn’t help but start grinning, giving him a small wave. Joe immediately attached himself to Ben’s side, yelling a greeting in his ear. 

Ben managed to disguise a wince and smiled at the older man instead. “Hey buddy,” he said back, placing his free arm over Joe’s shoulders. He looked at Gwilym who was entertaining himself by tucking a hair behind a watcher’s ear, a stifled a snort. 

“Oh my  _ God,  _ Gwilym…” he muttered, ensuring that his voice sounded as disappointed as possible. “Gwil,  _ buddy… _ what are you  _ doing?” _

“He sure is good, isn’t he, Benny?” Joe slurred with a grin, poking him repeatedly in his side. 

Ben shuffled away from the tickling with a giggle, keeping his movie project in mind and making sure that his target stays well in frame. “Sure is, mate.” He muttered, unable to keep the smile off his face. 

Gwil spun around again, completely upside down now, earning a small applause from the gathered audience. Ben was almost fascinated: he knew it takes a lot of muscle to be able to ‘work’ the pole, and the fact that Gwil seemed to do it so  _ effortlessly, _ especially when drunk, was quite impressive and he really wanted to know where all of that came from. 

Joe detached himself from Ben, taking a step towards the little stage.

“Joe, what’re you gonna do, mate?” he called out, but Joe was already on the stage, clasping Gwil’s free hand in one of his and doing a little spin, giggling. The crowd clapped again, and Ben couldn’t keep the amused shake out of his voice when he says “Oh my  _ God” _ . 

Gwil spun upright, twirled away from the pole with a grace Ben hadn’t seen in him before, and pulled Joe in a small waltz before dipping him. 

The crowd laughed and cheered and for some reason Ben’s stomach weirdly constricted when the two pressed their lips together in a kiss, igniting yet another cheer from the crowd. 

“ _ All right,” _ he muttered. “All right! Time to go home now!”

He stopped recording, stuffed his iPhone in his back pocket and stepped on stage, dragging his friends off. The small audience boo’ed, and Ben boo’ed back, yelling ‘ _ early night in’ _ in response. Fuck it. 

 

The Uber ride home was without too much messes, really. Gwil ended up being less drunk than Ben had originally thought, chatting excitedly with the driver about some folklore Ben didn’t know about, but Joe really had had a few too many. He was leaning heavily on Ben, already half-asleep and slurring something about McDonalds and the world spinning. Ben couldn’t wait to get to Gwil’s apartment, which was the chosen place to crash as it was the closest to the pub, to deposit Joe on a proper bed and prevent any sore muscles. 

As soon as the driver stopped in front of Gwil’s apartment building, he thoroughly thanked the guy before dragging Gwil and Joe out of the car, quickly paying for the ride, and janking his friends up the stairs. Gwil only missed the keyhole twice before unlocking the door and Ben ushered the two of them in, pushing Gwil and Joe into the bathroom. The taller man stumbled, then decided to sit down on the edge of the bathtub, and Joe seemed to think it’d a brilliant idea to collapse on the floor.

“Benbenbenbenben-” Gwil chattered, ignoring how Ben squirted some toothpaste on his toothbrush and thrust the thing in front of them, mentioning for Gwil to take it. “Did it look good?”

“Did what look good, Gwil?” Ben sighed, waving the toothbrush in front of the former’s face. “Brush your teeth now please.”

Gwilym rolled his eyes and started brushing. “My little performance,” he said, through the foam in his mouth. “How was it?”

Ben chuckled and plucked Joe’s toothbrush from the holder, not trusting him with an electric toothbrush, and wet it before squirting some toothpaste onto it. “It was cool,” he said honestly, handing the toothbrush over to Joe who obediently began to brush his teeth with sloppy movements and drooping eyes. “I’m curious where you learned that though.” He wanted to brush his teeth as well - he was tired and wanted to go to sleep as soon as possible, but he decided against it. Getting Joe - who, by some miracle, hadn’t thrown up yet, considering the vast amounts of alcohol he’d managed to throw back on a basically empty stomach - to bed was the highest thing on his priority list, then Gwil, then himself. 

“I took a class on it for about 6 months after losing a bet.” Gwil leaned towards the sink to spit the toothpaste out, rinsing the brush. He plopped himself onto the ground then, next to Joe, and lovingly raked his fingers through the latter’s hair. “It was fun,” he added, grinning sloppily. Even though he didn’t look particularly drunk, he did still sound endearingly lazy with his speech.

Ben snorted. “I can imagine,” he said, and then directed his attention to Joe. “You finished?”

Joe nodded and clumsily climbed to his feet. He would have fallen if Ben didn’t catch him(Gwilym had unnecessarily grasped the back of Joe’s legs, Ben noticed to both his amusement and annoyance) and grins sheepishly, spitting out the toothpaste and throwing the toothbrush into the sink. “Alright buddy, let’s get you to bed.”

Gwil seemed to know what to do without Ben telling him, silently filling a glass with water and setting it on the nightstand, quickly rifling through Joe’s suitcase for sweatpants and throwing it surprisingly well-aimed at his friends. Ben’d forgotten that it was usually Gwilym taking care of all of them, and even drunk his routine was still in the works. He shushed Joe when the redhead started complaining about not being tired and folded both Joe’s pants and shirt. 

Joe was out like a light as soon as his head hit the pillow. 

“So,” Gwilym whispered, grinning mischievously. “Where’d ya wanna sleep, mate?”

Ben flushed without wanting to, knowing there was no solid reason, but Gwil’s smile always was so awfully bright and pretty that it was hard  _ not _ to feel flustered when it was directed at him. There were three options, he knew. Next to Joe, on the guest bed; alone, on the sofa in the living room; or next to Gwil. 

Joe started to snore, loudly, as always when he’d drunk enough to pass out. 

There were two options, he decided. 

“Haven’t decided yet,” he whispered back, ushering Gwil out of the room - but not before closing the blinds tightly - and into the hallway.

The silence between them was comfortable as they crossed the hall to the other bedroom. Gwil had the slightest hint of smile on his face when Ben ordered him to put on a pair of pyjama pants(“ _ God-fuckin’-dammit mate, at least I’m not allowin’ ya to wake up in a pair of scratchy denim” “Shut it, it’s not like you felt it anyway, ya git. You’d downed enough booze to knock out three horses”),  _ but complied nevertheless, stripping himself down to his boxers before plucking a clean pair out of his dresser. It took him an awfully long time to actually put the pants on as he kept stumbling and losing his balance, courtesy to the alcohol, and it was only a little hilarious. 

When Gwil fell back on his bed with a curse that would’ve woken Joe up hadn’t he been passed out by the alcohol, Ben decided to just share the bed. Like the friends, buddies,  _ mates _ they were, ‘cause fuck that no-homo shit. 

He quickly went to brush his teeth, checking his phone in the meantime and rewatching the video he’d taken. It was both amusing and mesmerising, and knowing that Gwilym would be  _ very  _ embarrassed by the video coming into the possession of Brian May(and maybe a little proud, he wasn’t sure), he sent it without feeling too guilty. Besides, Gwil wasn’t  _ that _ wasted, just enough to be a bit unaware of his surroundings and to drop his walls a little, so it wasn’t very bad. 

He added a quick apology for the time as an afterthought, adding a nice reference to Gwil’s video with a ‘ _ look what your son is doing!’ _ , and stuffed his phone back in his pocket again, finishing his brushing. When he arrived back in the bedroom, Gwil was already fast asleep, curled up in his duvet a snoring ever-so-slightly. He peeled off his clothes -  already noticing they reeked of beer, cigarettes, and sweat, not he best combination - and nicked a clean t-shirt from Gwilym’s dresser, sliding under the covers with a sigh. His phone was on the nightstand and seemed to already be buzzing with replies, and he couldn’t help but smile. 

_ Revenge _ , he thought, just before he drifted off,  _ is served best in the form of a comparable and equally as embarrassing video.  _

 

The next morning he was - unsurprisingly - the first to wake up. The curtains hadn’t been completely closed and Ben rolled out of bed with a sigh, taking one glance at his notifications before snorting. Brian obviously enjoyed the video, replying with a lot of capitalisation and exclamation marks. Ben’s favourite was the ‘ _ Payback feels amazing, no? Bri’ _ because that meant that even Gwil’s pseudo-dad thought his revenge was justified. He went to shower with a smirk on his face, unapologetically using Gwil’s shampoo and bodywash since he didn’t have his own stuff on him - and it smelled really good, he wasn’t gonna lie. 

After roughly towel-drying his hair, he decided against wearing the clothes he wore last night again, and slipped back into the bedroom to grab a pair of sweatpants.

Gwilym’s bedroom was comfortably dark, though Ben needed to get used to the lighting at first, and the only audible thing was Gwil’s steady breathing. The dresser made a little more noise than he would’ve liked, and Gwilym’s hoarse ‘ _ Ben?’ _ just as he’d fished his-  _ Gwil’s _ clothing out of the drawers, and he turned around sheepishly, quickly stepping into the soft sweatpants. 

“Mornin’,” he said cheerfully, and he saw Gwilym wince at the loudness of it. He quickly pulled the T-shirt over his face. “Slept well?”

Gwil sat up and rubbed at his face, messing up his bedhead a little more. “I feel shitty,” he admitted, and his eyes proceeded to narrow on the T-shirt. “Is that…?”

“Yours? Yep,” Ben pulled at the faded cotton. “My clothes are gross and I didn’t bring any, so-”

“As expected,” Gwilym yawned, loudly, and waved him off weakly. “Didn’t know why I asked.” He paused, then, squinting. “Hey, I gotta ask. Did I really- did I really pole dance last night? And did I really tell you how I was able to? Or was that some weird dream?”

Ben started to grin, unable to hold back a snicker. “You did, mate. It was fucking epic.” He leaned forward and patted the duvet when Gwil slumped forward, groaning. “Seriously though, you were great. Anyway, I’m making breakfast. Any requests?”

“Just toast will be fine,” Gwilym muttered, swinging the duvet back and climbing out of bed. “And tea. I’m gonna take a shower.”

“Okay!” Ben chirped, heart skipping a beat when Gwilym grabbed his phone as well. “I’ll be in the kitchen if you need me!”

 

“What the  _ fuck, _ Ben?”

Ben looked up from his book - something about medieval literature he’d nicked from Gwil’s bookcase this morning - and was greeted with the sight of a dripping wet Gwilym Lee, dressed in nothing more than a flimsy white towel held together with one hand and a large scowl. 

Ben grinned and took a bite of his toast.

“Hey mate,” he drawled, trying his best not to look too triumphant, and he fluttered his eyelashes. “How’re you feelin’? Bit more awake, I hope?”

Gwilym’s murderous facial expression did not change as he stepped closer. He was leaving small puddles on the wooden flooring, and it took all of Ben’s willpower to not follow a droplet sliding from Gwil’s hair down to his chest. 

“You told Brian on me?”

“Ah, that.” Ben forced his eyes back on the book, focusing on a fairly interesting passage about  _ Courtly Love _ . “I simply thought Brian might find it amusing.”

“You absolute  _ wanker, _ ” Gwilym hissed, slamming his iPhone facedown on the table with such a force that Ben almost winced. “You  _ git. _ You  _ insolent piece of shite-” _

“What’s the big deal?” Ben asked. He kept his voice light, and innocent, though it was really hard not to burst out in laughter at the spot. “You don’t appreciate being embarrassed by your best mates, because they’ve sent them a weird video?”

Gwil paled significantly and Ben felt that his grin had started to turn menacing. 

“I- uh…”

Ben stood up swiftly, leaning in close to Gwilym’s ear. He blew softly, making the taller man wince, and grinned again. “I can play just as dirty as you, Lee.”

He hauled his arse out of the living room as fast as he could before Gwilym thawed from his frozen state and started to chase him around his apartment in that ungodly small towel. He passed Joe on his way to the guest room, ready to lock himself in there, patting the redhead lovingly on his shoulder as he went. 

He locked the door as soon as he entered, and it seemed to be just in time as he heard Gwilym belting out words that’d make a sailor blush. 

Joe’s small ‘ _ I’m too hungover for this’ _ was the drop that made him lose his calm, bursting out in laughter and ignoring Gwil’s infuriated yelling as he clutched his stomach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, it's quite a bit longer than the first one, but that's simply because-  
> ...I don't have an excuse.  
> I hope you liked it, and be sure to leave kudos/a comment, they always make my day :)  
> Cheers! x


	4. #2.5 Bri,,, where were you in 1983??

Brian had half been expecting a Ben Hardy revenge video. 

The boy was more similar to Roger than people thought, and Brian sometimes felt like he knew Roger more than Brian knew himself. A bit different were their voices, a dry-sounding baritone versus a hoarse dog-whistle, but both were quick-witted and could get frustrated about tiny, trivial things - like the fact that Ben wasn’t allowed to smoke a lot with. The first time he’d complained about it, Brian had shared a look of amusement with Gwilym(who resembled him so much it scared him sometimes, counting back the years to where he could’ve been during the early months of 1983), who’d rolled his eyes and fondly patted Ben’s shoulder as his way of replying.

(It wasn’t that the rest of the boys weren’t similar to his old friends, no, far from it: Rami exuded this collected glamour and flair that Freddie possessed that made both Roger and him even fonder of the boy, and Joe’s jokes about his mother getting it on with Deaky could just as well have been the truth with the way they both looked, from the curves of their smile to the crinkling of their eyes. No, that wasn’t it, but Ben and Gwilym reminded him of Roger and him so much that it made him feel all warm and fuzzy and nostalgic.)

So Brian had been half-maybe-fully expecting a Ben Hardy revenge video, and him being pulled from his book by his buzzing phone, the notifications alerting a couple of texts from Ben, only made him smile in amusement as a result. 

He watched the video in a more sound-proofed part of his house, careful not to wake Anita because of the ungodly hour - he’d always been a night owl, bordering on insomniac some months - and the level of the volume. The video was quite hilarious, actually, and he could barely contain his laughter as Gwilym twirled around on the pole, yelling an enthusiastic greeting at Ben and flirting openly with a few people who’d gathered around him. His heart felt warm when Gwilym twirled Joe around, waltzing with him before dropping him down into a kiss, vague images of a comparable situation with Deaky and him during a party he doesn’t remember happening flashing through his head.

The video ends with an ‘ _ All right, all right, time to go home now! _ ” from Ben, sounding suspiciously jealous to Brian’s old ears. 

Fondly smiling, he replies with a couple of ‘ _ BRILLIANT’ _ s and similar phrases, making sure to underline how good revenge feels, before texting Roger about the ordeal. Fuck the timing.

‘ _ MATE, you wouldn’t even believe what Ben managed to do-’  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... and that concludes it.   
> This was a crack-ish fic that'd been swimming around in my head for a while, and I decided to write it out during a sleepless night. Worth it.   
> I sincerely hoped you liked it :)  
> xx


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